Discover Turner's Yorkshire

Discover Turner’s orkshire Discover the landscapes that inspired one of Britain’s greatest artists yorkshire.com/turner

Foreword Professor David Hill

Discover Turner’s Yorkshire online...

Follow developments to the Turner Trails at www.yorkshire.com/ turner. More exciting activities will be added over the next few months, including audio trails and self-guided walking trails, which will give you the opportunity to truly discover the many scenes that inspired Turner’s genius.

For information on current exhibitions in Yorkshire and permanent displays of Turner’s work, go to www.yorkshire.com/turneronview

Key Gift shop Tearoom Picnic site Toilets Wheelchair access

design: hammerdesign.co.uk

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Whilst every care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of the information contained in this publication, Welcome to Yorkshire can accept no responsibility for any errors or omissions. Information throughout this guide is compiled from details supplied by organisations or establishments concerned. No recommendation by Welcome to Yorkshire is implied by the inclusion of any information and Welcome to Yorkshire accepts no responsibility in the matter. Prices, dates, hours of opening, etc, were correct at the time of going to press. Readers are reminded that these details are subject to change and they are advised to check when finalising any arrangements. Please note the guide is not a comprehensive guide to all Yorkshire sites of interest and does not necessarily represent the views of Welcome to Yorkshire.

Dogs accepted VAQAS* English Heritage National Trust * Visitor Attraction Quality Assurance Scheme

I have been interested in Turner’s tours since I discovered as a student that his sketches were largely unidentified and that few established art historians had very much interest in what their subjects might be.

I realised then that to look through Turner’s sketchbooks, or follow in his footsteps, allowed a unique insight into his creative practice.

I have been naturally drawn to Turner’s work in my native county of Yorkshire. Turner was one of the most widely travelled artists of his generation and was working at the forefront of rapidly widening consciousness of the world. He was

also working at the beginning of expanding personal consciousness through tourism.

He was particularly attracted to Yorkshire through his contacts with good friends and patrons in the county, especially at Harewood and Farnley, and his Yorkshire work, as a result, has a distinct personality.

John Ruskin, the great scholar, said Turner’s Yorkshire work had “the most heart in it, the most serious unwearied finishing of truth.”

The word truth here is worth considering.

Turner obviously had his own notions of the truth of a place, but that was always

founded in exceptional observation and knowledge. It is always fascinating to compare his sketches or pictures to the sites as they are today, especially as many of the sites are largely unchanged.

But the real power of Turner’s approach to the landscape is that he was always looking to see it afresh. So Turner’s real lesson is for each visitor to do the same. In these landscapes that will always be rewarded.

Professor David Hill School of Fine Art, History of Art and Cultural Studies University of Leeds

Welcome to Turner’s orkshire

Turner - the forefather of impressionism

Turner first visited Yorkshire in 1797 and returned here throughout his life, inspired by the spirituality he found in its glorious landscapes. He visited more than 70 locations, sketching and painting the views from many angles. Most of the scenes in his Yorkshire works can still be viewed today despite some dramatic changes in the landscape.

JMW Turner RA (1775-1851) was one of Britain’s greatest landscape painters, watercolourists and printmakers. Renowned as ‘the painter of light’, Turner’s work helped to place romantic landscape painting on a par with history painting in the 19th Century and to plant the seeds of impressionism.

Turner’s very first trip was to Harewood House, home of the Lascelles family. His association with the flamboyant Edward Lascelles was to last 10 years. Edward had an interest in art, books and opera. He had already bought paintings from young and up-and-coming artists with a £300 gift from his father, Lord Harewood. He invited Turner, aged 22, to visit Harewood and paint six watercolours of the House and Castle. Most of these paintings remain with the Lascelles family, who still reside at Harewood.

As well as annual visits to his friend and patron, Walter Fawkes, of Farnley Hall, near Otley, the beauty, ruggedness and variety of Yorkshire’s landscape enticed Turner to make four grand tours, each of which lasted a few months.

From its rolling hills and dales, via its castles and abbeys, to its rugged coast, Yorkshire’s contrasting landscape sparked Turner’s artistic imagination. He travelled round on horseback with his sketchbooks and made over 1,000 sketches of Yorkshire, from

St Agatha’s Abbey, Easby © The Trustees of the British Museum

which he developed and painted over 100 watercolours of the landscape.

Turner’s second grand tour in 1816 lasted two months over the summer during which he made over 400 sketches of the landscape that particularly celebrated castles and country houses as part of the illustrations for the book ‘A General History of the County of York’ by Thomas Dunham Whitaker. This was Turner’s largest commission yet; he was paid the considerable sum of 3,000 guineas for his work.

Turner was a prolific painter and first exhibited his work at the Royal Academy at the age of just 15, when one of his watercolours was accepted for the 1790 Summer Exhibition. His first oil painting followed in 1796, and thereafter he exhibited at the Academy almost every year; his final exhibit was in 1850, the year before his death.

Sometimes controversial and increasingly eccentric as he grew older, Turner must have been an interesting spectacle. He was very short, always wore a black tailcoat and a top hat, and had rather a large nose causing the children near his house in London to call him ‘Old Blackbirdy’.

Take a step back in time using this booklet to trace Turner’s stopping points on this grand tour and his other trips to Yorkshire, and find out more about the inspiration behind his sketches and paintings. Each of the entries includes details on where to find Turner’s viewpoint and the location of a number of Turner Trails benches, which have been installed, where possible, at the vantage point from which Turner painted his most beautiful landscapes.

Turner was almost as enthusiastic about fishing as he was painting and he was reputed to have an umbrella that converted into a fishing rod.

Wakefield Bridge © The Trustees of the British Museum

Discover the landscapes that inspired one of Britain’s greatest artists

Whitby circa 1824 © Tate, London 2010

He died in the house of his mistress, Sophia Booth, in London on 19 Dec 1851. His final words are reported to have been “the sun is God.”

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Middlesbrough A1053

A1(M) A688

A167

A66

A1150 A66 A685

A66

A171

A66(M)

47 A66

Plan our Turner Trails here and at yorkshire.com/turner

A174

A66

Darlington

A67

A19

64 Whitby 65

A1(M) A6108

Richmond 59 A172 48 57A1 35 A19 46 66 18 13 Northallerton 7 40 Leyburn 39 22 A1 1 31 12 Hawes 2 Bedale 38 A19 14 16 27 58 A170 Thirsk 54 61 36 21 62 A168

Yorkshire Dales 17

60

A65

33

49

A171

53 52 Scarborough

44 Pickering

A170

24

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

A170

A64

A165

A61

50 Ripon 41 19

28

34

A165

8

10

A64

32 20

A19 A1(M)

A65

55

A59

6 A65

A59

A658

A65

42 A6068

A166 A1237

A59

63 23 Wetherby A1(M) M) Tadcaster

9

A650 A650

M1

Leeds

A6110 10

M621

A1(M)

A642

Huddersfield

M62

A637 A638

A628

Hull

A15

M18

A639 A1

A180 A19 M180

A635

Barnsley

A18

A635

11

A61

A630

M181

A630

A1173 A46

A6182 A638

A1(M)

A159

M1

51 Rotherham A6123

Sheffield A621 37

A57

A6102

A631 A614

A631

M1

A631

A156

Worksop A619

A1

A57

A623

A1

A619

B1205

M18

A15

A61

Chesterfield

B12

Scunthorpe

Doncaster

A629

A628

A165

A63 M62

A1(M)

A642

A628

A1033

Goole

A19

Wakefield 10 A638

M1

26

A1079

A1 M62

M62

A614

A63

M62

Halifax

A164

M1

4

A650 M606

5

A61 A64 A6

A6177 A6036

A1035

A1079 A19

29

Bradford

A165

A614

A64

A6120

A629

A1079

43 A64

A58

A660

Driffield

A166

York 67

A661 56

15

25

A629

A614

30 Harrogate 45 A61

3

A56

North York Moors

A60

A614

11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35

Askrigg & the Kings Arms, Askrigg Aysgarth Falls & Carperby Barden Tower & The Strid Beeston Hill, Leeds Beverley Minster Bolton Abbey Bolton Castle Boroughbridge & Ellenthorpe Hall Caley Park & Caley Crags, Otley Chevin Chantry Chapel, Wakefield & The Hepworth Wakefield Conisbrough Castle Constable Burton Village Green Cotter Force Coverham Church Dob Park Lodge, Washburn Valley Dove Scar Dow Cave, nr Kettlewell Downholme & Ellerton Priory Fountains Abbey Gordale Scar Hackfall Hardraw Force Harewood House Helmsley Castle High Mill, Addingham Howden Minster Jervaulx Abbey Kilnsey Crag Kirkstall Abbey Knaresborough Castle Leyburn Market Place Malham Cove Malham Tarn Malton & The Talbot Hotel, Malton Marrick Priory

36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67

Masham Market Place Meersbrook Park, Sheffield Middleham & Middleham Castle Mossdale Falls Nappa Scar, nr Askrigg Newby Hall Otley Chevin Forest Park Ouse Bridge, York Pickering Castle Plumpton Rocks Priory Villas & South Bank, Richmond Ravensworth Castle Richmond Castle Rievaulx Abbey Ripon Cathedral & Bell Banks, Sharow Rotherham Minster (Church of All Saints) Scarborough Scarborough Castle Semer Water Skipton Castle Spofforth Castle St Agatha’s Abbey, Easby (Easby Abbey) Sutton Bank The Kings Head Hotel, Richmond Thornton Force, nr Ingleton West Burton Falls West Tanfield Wetherby Bridge Whitby Whitby Abbey Whitcliffe Scar from Round Howe, Richmond York Minster

Askrigg

Askrigg & the Kings Arms, Askrigg Askrigg is a quiet village characterised by its tall houses and cobbled market place centred around St Oswald’s Church.

Turner travelled from Upper Wharfedale during the day and stayed the night at the Kings Arms, but he habitually used every hour of daylight to sketch. No sooner had he stabled his horse and taken refreshment, than he was out in the evening exploring his surroundings. He made a walking circuit to sketch the Yorebridge and Colby Falls, a short way to the west of the village, before climbing up to sketch Mill Gill Force above Askrigg and Whitfield Gill

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Force. The latter, although a dramatic fall on almost the same scale as Hardraw Force, is now almost completely unknown, since it has been completely lost under the growth of trees.

The Turner Trails bench is located in the Market Place beside the old pump on cobbles near the church.

NB: Toilets at the Kings Arms for customer use only. Public toilets available in village hall during daylight hours.

Aysgarth Falls and Carperby © Si Homfray

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Aysgarth Falls & Carperby

Kings Arms, Main Street, Askrigg, Leyburn, North Yorkshire DL8 3HQ Bench location: Askrigg Market Place

Aysgarth Falls, Aysgarth, and Carperby, Near Aysgarth, Leyburn, North Yorkshire DL8

Tel: 01969 650817

Tel: 01969 662910 Email: aysgarth@yorkshiredales.org.uk Web: www.yorkshiredales.org.uk

OS Map Ref: SD948910 Directions: Follow the A684 LeyburnHawes road to Bainbridge, where the minor road to Askrigg is clearly signposted. Askrigg is about 4 miles NE of Bainbridge. The Kings Arms is situated on Main Street Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

OS Map Ref: SE012888 (Aysgarth Falls) SE009899 (Carperby) Directions: Follow the A684 LeyburnHawes road to Aysgarth where the minor road (Church Bank) to Carperby and Aysgarth Falls is clearly signposted. Follow this for approximately 1 mile to Carperby.

Opening: Falls open all year round Visitor Centre opening: Summer (Apr-Oct): daily 10am-5pm Winter (Nov-Mar) Fri-Mon 10am - 4pm; Open Christmas week 28-31 Dec and 2-3 Jan 10am–4pm; Closed all Jan. Open Feb half term 10am-4pm.

Prices: Free.

Turner’s principal subject at Aysgarth was the famous falls. The River Ure drops over three major falls in less than one mile but it was the classic view and bestknown Lower Falls (then known as Aysgarth Force) that he chose to develop into a finished watercolour.

The first fall, High Falls, is easily seen from Yore Bridge by Yore Mill, while the second and third (Middle Falls and Lower Falls, respectively) can be viewed from well-managed paths and vantage points in Freeholders’ Wood on the north bank of the river.

The Lower Falls can be seen from above; typically Turner clambered down to sketch the best viewpoint.

Turner did not draw any specific sketches of Carperby although he passed through the village in July 1816.

Carperby offers fine views of Wensleydale and is a pleasant stroll from Aysgarth Falls.

The Turner Trails bench is on the roadside verge, almost opposite Carperby village hall at the east end of the village.

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Barden Tower

The Strid

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Barden Tower & The Strid Barden Tower is a medieval hunting lodge about 4km up the River Wharfe from Bolton Abbey. It was built in the fifteenth century by the Clifford family of Skipton Castle and survives much as Turner shows it. Turner’s viewpoint of Barden Tower is some distance away at a bluff above the Strid.

The Turner Trails bench (Pembroke Seat on the Strid Wood Nature Trails), is located at the spot where Turner sketched, overlooking Barden Tower.

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The spectacular Strid is where the broad River Wharfe suddenly narrows and the water rushes through with great force.

Like visitors today, Turner enjoyed the paths that follow the Strid’s course.

Turner’s watercolour of The Strid, probably completed around 1809, clearly shows a figure fishing, a recurring theme reflecting Turner’s enthusiasm for this pastime.

Turner’s view of the Strid can be seen on the Strid Wood Nature Trails (green trail) between Hawkstone Seat and Elm Tree Seat.

Leeds Skyline from Beeston Hill © Si Homfray

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Beeston Hill, Leeds

Strid Car Park, Bolton Abbey, Skipton, North Yorkshire BD23 6EX

Beeston Road, Leeds, LS11

Tel: 01756 718009 Email: tourism@boltonabbey.com Web: www.boltonabbey.com

Directions: Exit M621 J2, take the A643 signed to Morley and fork left immediately into Elland Rd. At T-junction, turn right at Cemetery Rd. After 1/3mile, turn left at traffi c lights onto Beeston Rd. The Social Club is a short way along on the left.

OS Map Ref: SE061565 (Viewpoint of Barden Tower) OS Map Ref: SE065563 (Strid) Directions: Follow the A59 SkiptonHarrogate road. Turn onto the B6160, through Bolton Abbey and continue for another 2 miles to Strid Car Park Opening: All year: 9am - 4pm Prices: £6 per vehicle, £3 per motorcycle or 50p per person for groups of 12 or more in one vehicle.

OS Map Ref: SE295314

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

Of all the cities of Britain, Leeds was one of the most important to Turner. He had important friends and patrons there and Leeds served as a base for his explorations of Yorkshire.

The view from Beeston Hill was already established as one of the finest viewpoints in Leeds. Turner was the first, however, to be interested in the new industrial landscape that was growing up around him; by 1816 a whole sea of new industry had spread out across the meadows of Hunslet and Holbeck to the south of the city.

Turner made an extraordinarily detailed study of the panorama of mills, with church towers and spires rising from the old town centre beyond, from which he developed a magnificently panoramic watercolour - literally the prototype image of an industrial cityscape.

Turner’s viewpoint can still be found just below Beeston Hill Social Club, while many of the landmarks can be visited across the city.

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Beverley Minster © Britain on View

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Beverley Minster Beverley Minster is the largest and finest church in East Yorkshire and reflects the great prosperity of these agricultural lands at the end of the middle ages. The church, and tomb within, are some of the most exquisite examples of Gothic carving in Britain and some of the most difficult subjects that Turner encountered on his tour.

He appears to have enjoyed the challenge, making particularly finely detailed pencil studies including an interior view of the Choir

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with the flamboyant tomb canopy almost certainly created for Eleanor, wife of Henry, first Lord Percy of Alnwick.

Beverley Minster, Minster Yard North, Beverley, East Riding of Yorkshire HU17 0DP

The exact viewpoint of Turner’s sketch of the north side can be found on Highgate and is remarkably similar today.

OS Map Ref: TA037393

Beverley Minster is a site of major architectural importance and open to visitors. The Percy Canopy within, which Turner captured, is recognized as one of the masterpieces of English decorated stone carving.

Opening: Weekdays: 1 Nov-28 Feb 9am-4pm; 1 Mar-30 Apr 9am-5pm; 1 May-31 Aug 9am-5.30pm; 1 Sept-31 Oct 9am-5pm Sundays: 1 Nov-31 Mar noon-4pm; 1 Apr-31 Oct noon-4.30pm

Tel: 01482 868540 Email: minster@beverleyminster.org.uk Web: www.beverleyminster.org Directions: Follow the A164 into Beverley. At the mini roundabout, right onto Keldgate/B1230 and follow round to Minster

Prices: Free.

Bolton Abbey © Si Homfray

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Bolton Abbey Bolton Abbey, Skipton, North Yorkshire BD23 6EX Tel: 01756 718009 Email: tourism@boltonabbey.com Web: www.boltonabbey.com OS Map Ref: SE075540 Directions: Follow the A59 SkiptonHarrogate road. Bolton Abbey is clearly signposted just off the A59 on the B6160 Opening: 1 Jan-21 Mar 9am-6pm; 22 Mar-31 May 9am-7pm; 1 Jun-31 Aug 9am-9pm; 1 Sept-29 Oct 9am-7pm; Winter: 9am-6pm Prices: £6 per vehicle, £3 per motorcycle or 50p per person for groups of 12 or more in one vehicle.

Turner made a number of visits to the Bolton Abbey Estate, producing a series of watercolours of the ruins of the 12th century Priory and nearby sites including The Strid, Barden Tower and Addingham Mill.

In fact, the area made a lasting impression on him.

Ruskin, the influential 19th century English art critic and social thinker, said that no matter what Turner painted in later life, he was always influenced by the memories of “the chanting waves of the Wharfe.”

In many ways his watercolour of Bolton Priory is the summary of Turner’s memories of Yorkshire. Bolton Priory is only obliquely his subject; rather it is his pleasure at being in the landscape, sitting on the stones by the river, tying his fly, fishing in the clear peaty water of the River Wharfe.

The Turner Trails bench is located at Turner’s viewpoint, downstream of the Priory on the River Wharfe’s shoaling near the footbridge.

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Bolton Castle © Si Homfray

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Bolton Castle Bolton Castle, a spectacular medieval fortress, was a major subject for Turner on his Yorkshire tour of 1816. There are at least twelve sketches in two sketchbooks. Bolton Castle also appears as a distant landmark in a number of other sketches taken from the west around Aysgarth and the east around Middleham.

In his more considered sketches, Turner had clearly found views which he intended to develop into finished watercolours and no doubt he would have

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done so had the project been fully completed.

Inspired by Bolton Castle’s impressive location, Turner made ten small sketches recording the castle and adjoining village from every angle, near and far, and two further larger and more considered sketches of the Castle from the west and the north east. The panoramic view from the west remains the same now as when Turner drew it two centuries ago.

The Turner Trails bench is situated outside Bolton Castle on the village green.

Boroughbridge market place © Si Homfray

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Boroughbridge & Ellenthorpe Hall

Nr Leyburn, North Yorkshire DL8 4ET

Boroughbridge, North Yorkshire YO51

Tel: 01969 623981 Email: info@boltoncastle.co.uk Web: www.boltoncastle.co.uk

Web: www.boroughbridge.org.uk/

OS Map Ref: SE034918

Directions: 1 mile east of the A1 at J48.

Directions: 6 miles west of Leyburn just off the A684 Leyburn-Hawes road and signposted from Wensley and Carperby.

Access to Ellenthorpe Hall by foot only. Follow the River Ure from Boroughbridge for approximately one mile E on the N side of the river.

Opening: 27 Mar-31 Oct, Tues-Sun 10am-5pm; Open bank and school holiday Mondays (except 2nd Aug).

The Castle will close at 1.30pm on 10, 17, 24 & 31 July, 28 August, 4 & 11 Sep, 2 Oct 2010.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Adult: £6.50 Child: £5.00 Adult concession: £5.00 Family: £20.00 (includes 2 adults and up to 3 concessions). Gardens only £1 per head. Dogs accepted in Gardens.

The Turner Trails bench can be accessed all year round and is free.

OS Map Ref: SE397667 and SE410674 (view from Ellenthorpe Hall)

Prices: Free.

With the coming of the stagecoach, Boroughbridge, with its many inns, became one of the busiest staging posts on the Great North Road and Turner seems to have used the market town as a stopover, probably staying the night in one of the local inns.

Turner made some sketches of the eponymous bridge, both upstream and downstream. Further down the north bank of the River Ure towards Ellenthorpe Hall, he made two more sketches. It seems that, on

the evidence of Turner’s sketches, a significant part of the medieval Ellenthorpe Hall was still standing.

This has now disappeared and its proximity to the riverbank in Turner’s sketch probably explains why (and why the present Ellenthorpe Hall has been built a good distance from the edge).

There are public footpaths downstream towards Ellenthorpe Hall, which make a pleasant walk along the River Ure.

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Caley Crags © Si Homfray

Chantry Chapel © Si Homfray

Chantry Bridge © Si Homfray

The Hepworth Wakefield © J Wilde

Caley Park & Caley Crags, Otley Chevin Caley Park, across the valley from Farnley Hall and owned by the Fawkes family, was almost certainly bare, unforested moorland during Turner’s time. It was wooded by Walter Fawkes during the 1780s and is now commonly known as the Otley Chevin. It was gifted

by Fawkes’ descendents in 1946 “for perpetual use by the public for exercise and recreation.”

Turner completed a number of watercolours here, including one featuring woodcock being shot on The Chevin, near Caley

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Crags. The presence of the ground-nesting woodcock is used today to assess the balance between people and wildlife; they are only seen in less busy parts of the forest.

Turner’s painting suggests that woodcock were still present in that part of the Chevin, but not so today.

The Turner Trails bench is located near Caley Crags with clear views across to Farnley Hall (now a private residence). It can be accessed on foot through Stag Wood and Keepers Wood.

Upper Shawfi eld Car Park, East Chevin Road, Otley, West Yorkshire LS21 Tel: 01943 465023 Web: www.chevinforest.co.uk OS Map Ref: SE230445 Directions: 9 miles NW of Leeds on the A660 to Otley; follow signs from Otley town to East Chevin Road.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

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10 Chantry Chapel, Wakefield & The Hepworth Wakefield Chantry Bridge, Wakefi eld WF1 5DJ and The Hepworth Wakefi eld.

Tel: 01924 372748 OS Map Ref: SE340201 (Chantry Chapel) Directions: A61 to Wakefi eld, follow signs to Wakefi eld Kirkgate Rail.

Where the A61 crosses the river, the old bridge runs parallel and the Chapel can be viewed. There is limited parking in this area.

Opening: Turner’s viewpoint all year round.

Chantry Chapel - limited opening hours, please telephone for more information.

The Hepworth Wakefi eld opens May 2011.

The Chantry Chapel of St Mary the Virgin is a rare survival from the middle ages, standing on a medieval bridge built in the 1340s.

Turner found a view on the south bank of the River Calder from where he could take in the medieval bridge and Chantry Chapel, with the town and spire of All Saints (now Wakefield Cathedral) beyond. He made a detailed study of the view and of the front of the chapel and developed this into one of the finest watercolours to result from his 1797 grand tour.

This important site on the River Calder was a major focal point for many artists visiting Wakefield. The surrounding area is now part of a multi-million pound regeneration project including construction of the largest purpose-built gallery outside London, The Hepworth Wakefield (opening May 2011).

Turner’s view along the river is perfectly preserved where you can look across to the Chantry Chapel and the city beyond.

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Conisborough © Si Homfray

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Conisbrough Castle Conisbrough Castle, one of the best surviving examples of medieval military architecture, was a well-known landmark in Turner’s time, with its spectacular geometrical keep dating from 1180.

The riverside mill close by was owned by the famous iron master, Samuel Walker of Masbrough, near Rotherham and was in use as part of an iron foundry.

Finding a viewpoint near the River Don, Turner made a sketch that combined both the riverside mill and the castle keep.

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It was presumably in one of Walker’s mills that Turner also took pause to make a dramatic record of the interior, with workers heaving the white hot metal under the hammers, and baking in the radiating light and heat.

Turner’s actual viewpoint of the Castle can be found near Walker’s iron foundry on the River Don by following the riverside footpaths along the north bank.

Conisbrough Castle is open to visitors.

Constable Burton Hall

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Constable Burton Village Green

Castle Hill, Conisbrough. Doncaster, South Yorkshire DN12 3BU

Constable Burton Village Green, Near Leyburn, North Yorkshire DL8

Tel: 01709 863329 Email: conisbrough.castle@englishheritage.org.uk

OS Map Ref: SE167909 (Turner Trails Bench)

Web: www.english-heritage.org. uk/daysout/properties/ conisbrough-castle/

Directions: 8 miles W of the A1 on the A684 between Bedale and Leyburn Opening: All year round.

OS Map Ref: SK517994 (viewpoint) SK515989 (castle)

Prices: Free (admission charges apply if visiting the nearby Constable Burton Gardens).

Directions: NE of Conisbrough town centre off A630; 4.5 miles SW of Doncaster

The Turner Trails bench can be accessed all year round and is free.

Opening: 1 Apr-30 Jun Sat-Wed, 10am-5pm; 1 Jul-31 Aug daily, 10am5pm; 1 Oct-31 Mar Sat-Wed, 10am4pm 24-26 Dec and 1 Jan closed Prices: Adults: £4.20 Concessions: £3.60 Child: £2.10 (under 5’s free) Family (2+2): £10.50 English Heritage free.

Constable Burton Hall was built by John Carr of York in 1768 and is still the home of the Wyville family today. It is set in beautiful countryside, surrounded by 18th Century parkland providing lovely woodland walks.

Turner sketched the main front of Constable Burton Hall from the carriage drive and was probably considering making a finished watercolour of the house, although this was never completed.

of Constable Burton village green next to the playground. Turn off the A684 into the village and the green is on the left hand side.

You can also visit Constable Burton Gardens. The house is not open to the public, but its beautiful gardens, including the stream garden with its architectural plants and reflection ponds, are open between March and September.

The Turner Trails bench is found at the far end

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Cotter Force © Si Homfray

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Cotter Force Cotter Force is a lovely secluded waterfall in a wooded setting. It is a series of about half a dozen waterfalls with the largest single drop being about 1.5m. The force widens as it descends, from less than a metre at the top to about 4.5m wide at the bottom.

Turner spent a day sketching here, having spent the night at the nearby Green Dragon Inn in Hardraw.

Turner clearly enjoyed Cotter Force’s seclusion and he made one of his most careful and detailed

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sketches here. One interesting detail of the sketch is that fact that Turner noted that there were ‘children looking over’ from the bushes at the top right of his sketch.

The trail is a 490m level path from the roadside alongside the beck which is suitable for wheelchairs.

The surface is constructed of compacted stone with a general width of 110cm.

There are three seating areas evenly spaced along the footpath.

Coverham Church © Si Homfray

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Coverham Church

Holme Heads Bridge, Hawes, North Yorkshire DL8

Holy Trinity, Coverham, Nr Leyburn, North Yorkshire DL8 4RN

Web: www.yorkshiredales.org.uk/1. home/outandabout/whattosee/ bestplacestosee/cotterforce. htm

Web: www.visitchurches.org.uk/ fi ndachurch/holy-trinitycoverham/?region=North_ Yorkshire

OS Map Ref: SD850915

OS Map Ref: SE104864

Directions: Access from the A684 Hawes-Garsdale road near Holme Heads Bridge, approximately 2 miles W of Hawes.

Directions: Take A6108 from Leyburn to Middleham. From Middleham follow brown tourist signs for Forbidden Corner to reach Coverham after 2 miles. The church is in on the left hand side as you pass through the hamlet

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

Coverham Church is in Coverdale, one of Yorkshire’s quietest and least-known valleys, but in the Middle Ages it was the site of an important abbey that flourished under the protection of nearby Middleham Castle.

pocketbook and then found a more distant viewpoint from the road to Middleham, where he could see the abbey, bridge and church. He clearly took time over this sketch and must have been intending a finished watercolour.

The church is now under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust while the ruins of Coverham Abbey have been incorporated into a private house, which can be seen from the road.

Turner’s sketch of the Abbey included a detailed study of Coverham Church, which can still be visited today.

Turner made a quick sketch of the Abbey ruins in his

The Turner Trails bench is located next to the church entrance on the right of the lych gate seen from the road.

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Dob Park Lodge, Winter © TJ Blackwell

Dob Park Lodge, Washburn Valley Dob Park Lodge is an early 17th century lodge on the upper valley side, north of Otley, now in ruins. Turner completed his watercolour, ‘On the Washburn, under Folly Hall’, around 1815.

While a dead tree trunk lying on the river bank is the focus of Turner’s watercolour, the ruined towers are clearly crowned in the distance.

The viewpoint lies on the banks of the Washburn about half a mile due north of Dob Park Lodge, just south of the old farm complex of Folly Hall.

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The exact view is obscured today by tree growth along the banks of the river, but it is possible to obtain a similar view from the rising ground off a public footpath a little north east of the exact viewpoint.

The best starting point is the west end of Stainburn Forest, north of Otley, where car park facilities are available. Minor roads and footpaths can be followed to reach the spot.

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Dove Scar © Arnold Price

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Dove Scar

The Washburn Valley, near Otley, West Yorkshire LS21

Dove Scar, near West Burton, North Yorkshire DL8

OS Map Ref: SE190513 (Turner’s viewpoint) SE210509 (car park)

OS Map Ref: SE029878

Directions: Follow the B6451 north of Otley. Just after the minor road on the right (signed to Lindley), the Norwood Edge car park (Forestry Commission) can be accessed on the left.

The viewpoint can only be accessed on foot.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

Directions: Leave the A684 LeyburnHawes road at the turning for the B6160/Ellers Lane to West Burton.

Dove Scar can be viewed about one mile down Morpeth Gate, an unclassifi ed track running to the NE of West Burton. This track is not suitable for cars Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

Turner visited West Burton on 28 Jul 1816 when collecting sketches for illustrating ‘A General History of the County of York’ by Thomas Dunham Whitaker. He first sketched the waterfalls in the village of West Burton before exploring Dove Scar, the limestone escarpment further afield.

Turner took the old lane past Flanders Hall in West Burton and climbed quite steeply for about a mile until reaching the junction with the lane from West Witton at the

edge of a huge limestone escarpment. The summit here offers a grandstand view of one of the finest and widest panoramas of all Wensleydale.

Turner took out his sketchbook and recorded the view all the way round from the vale of West Burton to the left, over Aysgarth in the middle distance to upper Wensleydale beyond, round nearly to West Witton. He obviously thought that the effort of walking up to this viewpoint was well worthwhile.

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Stream below Dow Cave © Si Homfray

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Dow Cave, nr Kettlewell Dow Cave is one end of the famous Dowbergill Passage, 10-25 metres high but only 1 metre wide and completely straight for 1,500 metres. It was produced by solution along a fault and the stream goes through a spur of Great Whernside.

Turner belonged to the first generation to develop an aesthetic interest in exploring caves and appears to have hired a guide to show him to the cave and lead him underground.

He made two careful, detailed sketches of the

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cave entrance in a large sketchbook and a series of quick notes underground in a smaller pocketbook.

Working in the dark, or by flickering candlelight, many of these are almost indecipherable, but nevertheless show his excitement at descending into the cave.

The entrance of the cave (and Turner’s viewpoint) can be reached from a footpath. However, the cave is one of the great potholing adventures of the Yorkshire Dales and should not be entered unless with experts.

Ellerton Priory © Si Homfray

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Downholme & Ellerton Priory

Dow Cave, Near Kettlewell, North Yorkshire BD23

Downholme, Richmond, North Yorkshire DL11 6AE

OS Map Ref: SD983743

OS Map Ref: SE101973 (Turner’s viewpoint) SE113979 (Turner Trails bench)

Directions: Follow the B6160 to Kettlewell. The site lies about 3/4 mile E of the Kettlewell to Middleham road which is accessible via a public footpath only.

Opening: All year round.

Directions: Downholme is about six miles SW of Richmond on the A6108. Bear left into the village upon reaching the grassy triangle.

Prices: Free.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

Downholme is a small village near Richmond right on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales.

Turner made no sketches of Downholme village itself, but two from nearby. One was from about a mile west of the village, giving a superb view up Swaledale towards the remains of Ellerton Priory (west of Downholme). Turner clearly intended to make a finished watercolour of this.

approached from the high ground of Downholme Moor.

The Turner Trails bench is located in the centre of the village beyond the Bolton Arms Inn, on the village green.

After passing through Downholme he drew another sketch of the first sight of Richmond as he

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Fountains Abbey

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Fountains Abbey Fountains Abbey & Studley Royal is Yorkshire’s finest Cistercian Abbey ruin, spanning over 800 years of history, and as such it offered a wealth of potential material for Turner.

During his first visit he made three detailed pencil sketches (two with watercolour) in two large sketchbooks that he carried with him and then during the following winter developed a watercolour to exhibit at the Royal Academy in the spring.

Turner revisited Fountains Abbey in 1816 and made a

number of good sketches on that occasion and a watercolour of the base of Abbot Huby’s tower.

Ripon, North Yorkshire HG4 3DY

Turner’s viewpoint for his second watercolour from his 1816 visit is easily accessed by exploring the interior of the Abbey ruins; the great perpendicular tower built by Huby dominates the north transept.

OS Map Ref: SE275682

The Turner Trails bench is located within the Abbey facing the north transept, the inspiration for Turner’s Interior of Fountains Abbey watercolour.

Prices: Adult: £8.25 Child: £4.40 Family: £22 (2 adults, up to 3 child) National Trust & English Heritage members & under 5s free.

Tel: 01765 608888 Email: info@fountainsabbey.org.uk Web: www.fountainsabbey.org.uk Directions: 8 miles west of the A1 on the A61 to Ripon; 4 miles west of Ripon off B6265. Follow the brown tourist signs.

Opening: Oct-Mar 10am-4pm; Apr-Sep 10am-5pm.

Grounds closed 24/25 Dec and Fridays in Nov, Dec & Jan.

Gordale Scar

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Gordale Scar Gordale Scar, near Malham, North Yorkshire BD23 Web: www.yorkshiredales.org.uk/ index/enjoying/national_park_ centres_1/malham_national_ park_centre.htm OS Map Ref: SD913635 (tea van) Directions: Turn off the A65 at Gargrave and continue through the villages of Airton and Kirkby Malham to Malham.

Malham National Park Centre is found as you enter the village of Malham from the south.

There is limited parking at the Scar and you may be better parking in the car park in Malham and walking on the footpath from the village to Janet’s Foss and beyond to Gordale Scar.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

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Gordale Scar, a 100m deep limestone chasm, was fi rst ‘popularised’ by Thomas Gray in 1769: “The rock on the left rises perpendicular with stubbed yew trees and shrubs, starting from its side to the height of at least 300 feet; but those are not the things: it is that to the right under which you stand to see the fall, that forms the principal horror of the place. From its very base it begins to slope forwards over you in one black and solid mass without any crevice in its surface and overshadows half the area below with its dreadful canopy… I stayed here (not without shuddering) a quarter of an hour, and thought my trouble richly paid, for the impression will last for life.”

It can be no coincidence that Turner situated himself exactly under Gray’s overhang.

Turner set up his easel here and painted in colours direct onto his sheet, resulting in the largest plein air study on paper that Turner ever attempted, and one of his liveliest.

He also made a series of sketches around the gorge and one including the pretty waterfall of Janet’s Foss, a short distance away.

Turner’s viewpoints are easy to locate and very much unchanged. Janet’s Foss (south) and Gordale Scar (north) can be accessed via short walks on footpaths from the tea van at Gordale Bridge.

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Mowbray Castle, Hackfall © Catriona McLees

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Hackfall Set in a 350ft gorge on the edge of Grewelthorpe, Hackfall was bought in 1731

by John Aislabie, famous for his landscaping work at nearby Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal. Around 1750 his son, William, laid out the most dramatic section as a woodland garden. There are pathways, grottos, follies, springs, ponds and waterfalls on a grand scale, and Hackfall was one of the most important and famous managed landscapes of its kind and period in Britain.

The woods are now owned by the Woodland Trust and in the care of the Hackfall Trust, and considerable work has been done since 2002 to recover this ‘lost landscape’ and to

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Hardraw Force © Britain on View

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preserve the historic buildings and improve access.

Hackfall Woods, North Yorkshire HG4 4DY

The Green Dragon Inn, Hardraw, Hawes DL8 3LZ

After much sketching, Turner recorded two subjects very carefully, both resulting in fi nished watercolours. First a view from Sandbed Hut, looking downstream to the folly, Mowbray Castle, built as part of Aislabie’s plan.

Email: paulmosley@woodlandtrust. org.uk

Tel: 01969 667392 Email: info@greendragonhardraw.com Web: www.greendragonhardraw.com

Second, from a high viewpoint where Aislabie built an ornamental Banqueting House, taking in a panorama of the wooded gorge, from the Vale of Mowbray to the Hambleton Hills.

The Turner Trails bench is located by Sandbed Hut at the site from which Turner sketched. It can only be accessed on foot.

Web: www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/ hackfall OS Map Ref: SE235775 (Turner Trails bench) SE231775 (Hackfall car park) Directions: Follow the A6108 LeyburnRipon road to Masham. Fork into the village and follow Thorpe Road S of Masham for around 2 miles.

Car park available at the Masham end of Hackfall Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

OS Map Ref: SD867912 Directions: Follow the A684 HawesGarsdale road. The minor road to Hardraw (signposted Hardraw and Askrigg) is about 1/3 mile N of Appersett. Follow for about 1/2 mile.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: An entrance fee of £2 per adult is payable on the way through the pub.

Hardraw Force Hardraw Force is at the head of a short gorge behind the Green Dragon Inn and, at 79 feet, has the reputation of being one of the highest single-drop waterfalls in England. It was already a well-known attraction in Turner’s time, with fellow contemporaries such as Wordsworth also visiting.

Turner made two large sketches of the falls and developed first a fine watercolour study before making his final finished watercolour. Turner’s watercolour shows that

the site has changed quite markedly in character since 1816. When Turner visited, the valley was entirely bare of trees. For more than 20 years before his visit, England had been at war with France and native timber had been in severe demand. It is arguable that there was more open scenery at that time than any other period in England’s history.

The Turner Trails bench is located in the grounds of The Green Dragon Inn. NB: Toilets for customer use only.

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Harewood House

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Harewood House Harewood House is the very foundation of Turner’s association with Yorkshire; it is because of the First Earl of Harewood and his son, Viscount Lascelles, that Turner came to Yorkshire in the first place - to make a series of watercolours of Harewood House and Castle, and two oils of Plompton Rocks.

He was then able to use Harewood as a springboard for a more extensive tour of Yorkshire and thus began an association of nearly thirty years.

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Helmsley Castle

Edward, Viscount Lascelles, was one of Turner’s most important early patrons and supported Turner through to becoming fully established and successful.

Harewood House, Harewood, Leeds, West Yorkshire LS17 9LG

Castlegate, Helmsley, York, North Yorkshire YO62 5AB

Tel: 0113 2181010 Email: info@harewood.org Web: www.harewood.org

Tel: 01439 770442 Email: helmsley.tic@english-heritage. org.uk

OS Map Ref: SE324431

Turner’s viewpoint of Harewood House from the south east is on a public bridleway running through the south part of the estate.

Directions: Follow the brown tourist signs from the A1, on the A61 LeedsHarrogate road.

By public transport: No. 36 bus Leeds Bus Station-Harrogate/Ripon - halfprice admission for anyone arriving by public transport with a valid bus ticket.

Web: www.english-heritage.org.uk/ helmsleycastle

Harewood House is also open to visitors.

Opening: Apr-31 Oct 2010 daily, 10am-4pm; Nov-early Dec open at weekends only; Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Day, Good Friday closed.

Prices: From £5.50

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Helmsley Castle

OS Map Ref: SE612836 Directions: Follow the A170 ThirskScarborough road to Helmsley.

Helmsley Castle is clearly signposted.

Opening: 1 Apr-30 Sep daily, 10am6pm; 1-31 Oct 10am-5pm, 1 Nov-28 Feb 10am-4pm, 1-31 Mar 10am-5pm all Thur-Mon. 24-26 Dec and 1 Jan closed.

Prices: Adult: £4.70 Child: £2.40 Concession: £4 Family Ticket: £11.80 English Heritage free.

Helmsley Castle has an impressive complex of deep ditches and high banks surrounding the great medieval castle’s ruins, and was sketched by many artists in the later eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.

Turner made a series of studies at Helmsley in which he explored views of the main buildings, including the keep, west range and gateway from across the deep ditch. The sketches show the ditches had filled in quite considerably at that time and were choked with shrubby trees.

Turner also made a good sketch of Helmsley Castle as seen over Helmsley Bridge, looking west from the north bank of the River Rye, which formed the basis of a watercolour study called ‘Evening landscape, with Castle and Bridge.’

Subsequent building on the north bank coupled with tree growth, has made the exact view impossible today.

The site of Turner’s sketch of the keep is still accessible in the grounds, just to the south east of the castle.

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High Mill from the bridge

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High Mill, Addingham Turner passed through Addingham on several occasions whilst travelling towards Bolton Abbey or Skipton from the home of his Yorkshire friend and patron Walter Fawkes of Farnley Hall. Turner’s only visit to sketch at Addingham, however, was in 1808. On this occasion he sketched on exceptionally large sheets of paper, in fact some of the largest sheets that he ever attempted to use outdoors.

We can only assume that conditions were settled and still for this to have been possible.

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Turner found a viewpoint from which to sketch downstream of Addingham Mill, not far from the pedestrian footbridge across the River Wharfe.

Shortly afterwards he used these to paint a fine watercolour.

The view of the mill itself – upstream from the bridge – is somewhat obscured by overgrowth of trees in the summer, but visible (and remarkably like) in the winter. The footbridge can be accessed from Bark Lane in the village.

Howden Minster © Si Homfray

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Howden Minster

off Bark Lane, Addingham, Ilkley, West Yorkshire LS29

Market Place, Howden, East Riding of Yorkshire DN14 7BL

OS Map Ref: SE084499

Tel: 01430 430332 Web: www.english-heritage.org.uk/ daysout/properties/howdenminster/

Directions: Follow the A65 IlkleySkipton road, turn right approximately two miles beyond Ilkley, clearly signposted for Addingham. Turn right into Church Street (signed Bolton Abbey), follow for less than half a mile until it becomes Bark Lane.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

OS Map Ref: SE749282 Directions: Near the junction of A63 and A614 in the centre of Howden.

Opening: All year round.

24-26 Dec and 1 Jan closed.

Prices: Free.

The church of St Peter and St Paul in Howden was one of the largest and finest in East Yorkshire and reflected the very great prosperity of these agricultural lands at the end of the middle ages.

Although the minster was not destroyed in the Dissolution, the chancel fell into ruin; the roof eventually collapsed in 1696 and the chapter house roof collapsed in 1750.

Turner’s enthusiasm for observation and careful notation was as powerful and penetrating as ever and he made two particularly

finely detailed pencil studies of the east end of Howden Minster, starting on the left page with the chapter house and finishing with the great east window on the right.

Turner’s exact viewpoint of Howden Minster is still accessible. While the core of the church still serves as Howden’s parish church, the collegiate structures, including the chapter house and chancel, are beautifully decorated ruins with Gothic carvings. The ruins are in the care of English Heritage and are viewable only from the outside.

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Jervaulx Abbey © Si Homfray

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Jervaulx Abbey Founded in 1156, Jervaulx Abbey was once a great Cistercian monastery before being ravaged and pillaged during the Dissolution of Monasteries, and dissolved in 1587.

The abbey is a charming and atmospheric ruin; Turner was searching for a view that would show its tranquil setting in the wide sweep of Wensleydale.

He always noticed signs of human activity in the landscape and his sketch includes two distinct plumes of smoke rising from fields in the valley floor; it is possible that

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farmers were burning stubble to prepare for late summer ploughing.

Turner concentrated on vantage points in the park to the east of Jervaulx and found one from a slightly elevated viewpoint where he could look over the abbey to the valley stretching away towards Danby Hall and Middleham. This viewpoint is still accessible today by following the public footpath that leads away south east from the Abbey.

The Turner Trails bench is located within the Jervaulx Abbey grounds.

Fish p ponds looking to Kilnsey Crag © Si Homfray

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Kilnsey Crag

Park House, Jervaulx, Ripon, North Yorkshire HG4 4PH

Kilnsey near Skipton, North Yorkshire BD23

Tel: 01677 460226 Web: www.jervaulxabbey.com

OS Map Ref: SD979675

OS Map Ref: SE172857 (Turner Trails bench) SE175856 (Turner’s viewpoint) Directions: Jervaulx is situated halfway between Masham and Leyburn on the A6108.

Opening: Dawn until dusk all year round.

Prices: Honesty box payment for entry into Jervaulx Abbey.

Directions: Off the B6160 Threshfi eldKettlewell road, signposted Conistone and St Mary’s Church.

Parking is available at Kilnsey Park and Trout Farm.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free

The distinctive Kilnsey Crag is a towering inland limestone cliff, around 50 metres high, which has an impressive overhang of about 12 metres created by the Wharfedale glacier during the ice age.

A detailed sketch across two pages of Turner’s largest book of the view from a distance at the village of Conistone, taking in the headland of Kilnsey jutting into the Wharfe Valley, with the river and Conistone Bridge in the foreground and the higher fells of Upper Wharfedale in the background became

a highly atmospheric watercolour study.

However, it does not appear that he completed a watercolour from this.

A note in the sketchbook suggests that he promised to deliver it to Charles Cope of Leeds by December 1825, so possibly a major watercolour has been lost.

There is no public access to the exact viewpoint of Turner’s sketch of Kilnsey and Conistone Bridge.

However similar views can be enjoyed on a footpath leading from Conistone Bridge, looking towards Kilnsey Crag.

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Kirkstall Abbey © Si Homfray

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Kirkstall Abbey Kirkstall Abbey stands on a wide fertile sweep of the River Aire about three miles west of Leeds centre.

Housing a community of Cistercian monks, it grew to be one of Yorkshire’s largest abbeys before its dissolution in 1539.

a sense of weather and time. Turner pictures Kirkstall Abbey as a deep and solitary immersion in nature, whereas actually then, as well as now, it would have been as much a social as a natural experience.

The Abbey was an important site to Turner and he made several architectural studies at Kirkstall but was eventually drawn to a more distant view from the riverside in which he could relate the abbey to its surroundings and particularly develop

Turner’s viewpoint is at the other side of river from the Abbey but the same angle of the view can be obtained within the Abbey grounds.

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The Turner Trails bench is located within Kirkstall Abbey grounds, with good views of the Abbey.

Knaresborough Castle © Si Homfray

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Knaresborough Castle

Kirkstall Abbey, Kirkstall, Leeds LS5 3EH

Castle Yard, Knaresborough, North Yorkshire HG5 8AS

Tel: 0113 2305492 Web: www.leeds.gov.uk/ kirkstallabbey/

Tel: 01423 556188 OS Map Ref: SE349569

OS Map Ref: SE260360

Directions: 4 miles west of the A1 on the A59.

Directions: 3 miles W of Leeds city centre on the A65 (Kirkstall Road).

Opening: Please call for opening times and entry fees.

Opening: Apr-Sep, Tues-Fri 10am5pm; Sat – Sun 10am–6pm Oct-Mar, Tues–Thurs, Sat–Sun 10am– 4pm; Closed Mondays and Fridays except bank holidays (10am - 4pm).

Last admission 1 hour before closing Prices: Free.

The town of Knaresborough contained plenty of material for Turner’s sketchbook, including views of Knaresborough Castle, a ruined medieval fortress overlooking the River Nidd.

In 1797, Turner sketched Knaresborough Castle and the castle mills from the opposite side of the river.

In 1816 he explored views from the south, north and west in his pocketbook, while in his larger sketchbook he recorded distant views from the north west and south east. From this material,

he developed a superb finished watercolour, painted perhaps about 1825, in which he returned to a slightly more distant version of the composition he had first developed in 1797, but using his 1816 sketches to produce a more comprehensive view of the town and castle. The smoke rising from the castle mills is possibly a sign of the advancing industrial revolution, as the traditional water power of the mill was augmented by new steam engines.

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Leyburn Market Place © Si Homfray

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Leyburn Market Place Leyburn is a small attractive market town sitting above the northern bank of the River Ure on the edge of Wensleydale.

Turner passed through Leyburn around the beginning of September 1816 during his extensive tour of Yorkshire to collect material for Whitaker’s history of York series.

Turner did not actually sketch in Leyburn, but may have stayed in the town when travelling from Middleham to Constable Burton, both of which

38

provided the subjects of sketches.

Leyburn is visible in the distance in Turner’s sketches that were drawn from above Middleham.

The Turner Trails bench is located in the centre of the Market Place beside the war memorial.

Malham Cove

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Malham Cove

Leyburn Market Place, Leyburn, North Yorkshire DL8

Malham Cove, near Malham, North Yorkshire BD23

Web: www.leyburnonline.co.uk

Web: www.yorkshiredales.org.uk

OS Map Ref: SE111905

OS Map Ref: SD897637

Directions: 12 miles W of the A1 on the A684.

Directions: Turn off the A65 at Gargrave and continue through the villages of Airton and Kirkby Malham to Malham. Malham National Park Centre is found as you enter the village of Malham from the south

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

The National Trust runs a shuttle bus to Malham Tarn and Malham village every weekend and bank holiday from Easter to October. It travels between Ilkley, Addingham, Skipton bus station and railway station, Settle and Malham Tarn, and carries several bikes.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free

Standing some 80 metres high and 300 metres wide, north of the mid craven fault, Malham Cove is a curved crag of carboniferous limestone formed after the last ice age.

With its stunning cliffs, crags and scars, Malham has inspired artists and writers such as Ward, Wordsworth and Kingsley, as well as Turner.

Any sketch that Turner might have made in 1808 has disappeared, however Turner painted a superb watercolour of Malham Cove from his sketches,

which he finished in 1809.

This is one of the first watercolours to give a vivid and convincing sense of weather as might be typically encountered in a Pennine village.

Turner’s viewpoint is perfectly recognisable on the path to the cove in the second field on the walk up from the village and the view is unchanged except for the growth of trees. It can only be accessed on foot from Malham Village, where there are car park facilities next to the National Park Centre.

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Malham Tarn

33

Malham Tarn Malham Tarn, the highest glacial lake in England, was sketched by Turner in heavy rain, which Turner found more appealing than repellent.

In 1816 Turner was commissioned to make 120 watercolours of principal subjects in Yorkshire. He arrived at the inn in Malham on the evening of 24 July, where he stayed with his friends, the Fawkes family.

He didn’t reach Malham Tarn until the following day, having said farewell to the Fawkes and ridden alone over the moors. Upon reaching his destination,

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Turner made three panoramic sketches looking over the lake to Tarn House, a shooting lodge of Lord Ribblesdale, with High Folds Scar behind and Great Close to the right.

Turner’s 1816 sketches of the Malham area illustrate ‘rural fare’ noting pigs and poultry grazing by the beckside in Malham village.

He also sketched at nearby Janet’s Foss and Gordale Scar.

Turner’s view over the Tarn can be easily reached from the car park at the south end of Malham Tarn.

Malton market place © Si Homfray

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Malton & The Talbot Hotel, Malton

Malham Tarn National Nature Reserve, near Malham, North Yorkshire BD24

Yorkersgate, Malton, North Yorkshire YO17 7AJ

Web: www.nationaltrust.org.uk/ main/w-malhamtarnmoor

Tel: 01653 693355 Email: info@englishrosehotels.co.uk Web: www.talbot-hotel-malton.co.uk

OS Map Ref: SD895662 Directions: Turn off the A65 at Gargrave and continue through the villages of Airton and Kirkby Malham to Malham. Follow the minor road above Malham to reach the Tarn, where a car park is available.

From Easter to October a shuttle bus operates at weekends and bank holidays up to Malham Tarn. It has a satellite-triggered audio tour on board and carries several bikes. It travels between Ilkley, Addingham, Skipton bus station and railway station, Settle and Malham Tarn.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

OS Map Ref: SE784715 Directions: From the A64 YorkScarborough road, follow the signs to Malton town centre.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free

Sometime between about 1816 and 1818, Turner made a short tour to Scarborough from Farnley Hall near Otley, the home of his friend Walter Fawkes. On the way back he passed through Malton, a quaint market town, and it looks very much as if he must have put up at The Talbot Hotel, since he took the trouble to sketch it with the town behind.

The original view has been obscured by development but the gardens of the hotel do provide a good place from which to view Turner’s sketch. From its vantage point high above the River Derwent, The Talbot has commanding views over the Howardian Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

NB: Toilets at The Talbot Hotel for customer use only.

The Talbot opened in 1740 as a coaching inn to serve travellers between York and the coast, and continues as a hotel to this day.

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Marrick Priory © Si Homfray

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Marrick Priory Marrick Priory is on the north bank of the River Swale, a little east of Grinton. It was founded in 1150 to house a community of Benedictine nuns but was dissolved by Henry VIII in 1540.

Turner sketched the view of the Priory from the east and developed it into a fine finished watercolour which was engraved in Whitaker’s ‘History of Richmondshire’, part of the projected seven volume ‘A General History of the County of York’, and published in December 1822.

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Turner’s actual viewpoint is now obscured by subsequent tree growth.

Regrowth, whilst a benefit, has obscured many fine views that were open for Turner to sketch.

The Turner Trails bench is located on a public footpath in a field above the Priory just before entering Steps Wood and provides views overlooking Swaledale.

NB: Marrick Priory is now an outdoor education and recreational centre, and open to residents only.

Masham market place © Si Homfray

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Masham Market Place

Marrick Priory, Marrick, Richmond, North Yorkshire DL11 7LD

The Market Place, Masham, North Yorkshire HG4

OS Map Ref: SE069978

OS Map Ref: SE225807 (Turner Trails bench)

Directions: Head through Richmond towards Reeth via the A6108 and B6270. Just before Reeth at Fremington turn right, signposted Marrick and Hurst. After a quarter of a mile, bear right and follow for 1 mile to Marrick Priory.

There is no parking at Marrick Priory.

Some parking might be possible on the road verges about 3/4 of a mile before reaching the Priory.

Opening: The Turner Trails bench can be accessed all year round.

Prices: Access to the Turner Trails bench is free.

Directions: Follow the A6108 LeyburnRipon road to Masham.

Market Place is at the junction of Silver Street and Church Street, with plenty of parking, run on an honesty box system.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

Masham is an attractive market town, with a spacious market square and a large church with a tall spire that can be seen from miles around.

Turner visited the town whilst working his way up central Wensleydale from Ripon towards Middleham sometime towards the end of August 1816.

obscured by tree growth today.

The Turner Trails bench is situated in the Market Place next to the war memorial, opposite the King’s Head Hotel.

Turner concentrated on views from the riverside near Masham Bridge and made a fine sketch from the north of the bridge depicting the town and church; these views are

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View over Sheffield from Meersbrook Park © Si Homfray

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Meersbrook Park Turner probably visited Sheffield in the mid 1790s, for at about that time he painted a watercolour of the city. Turner was then still a teenager, building his career by making illustrations for London printmakers and by colouring, copying and finding whatever work he could. The watercolour was engraved for a popular publication called The Copper Plate Magazine and Turner was probably paid very little for his work.

Turner’s exact viewpoint for his watercolour ‘View of Sheffield from Derbyshire

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Lane’ is now obscured by later buildings. Almost exactly the same view can be obtained from the green open space of the adjoining Meersbrook Park. The park is a vantage point for what is still one of the finest panoramas of the city and it is fascinating to see how the city has developed and changed – particularly the scale of modern buildings – whilst still retaining a very similar character overall.

The watercolour can be viewed in the Ruskin Gallery, within the Millennium Galleries in Sheffield.

Middleham Castle

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Middleham & Middleham Castle

Meersbrook Park Sheffi eld, South Yorkshire S8 9FL

Castle Hill, Middleham, Leyburn, North Yorkshire DL8 4QG

Tel:

Tel: 01969 623899 Web: www.english-heritage.org.uk/ daysout/properties/middleham-castle

0114 2500500

Email: parksandcountryside@ sheffi eld.gov.uk Web: www.sheffi eld.gov.uk OS Map Ref: SK350842 Directions: From Sheffi eld city centre take the A61 to Chesterfi eld, turn left up Beeton Road. At the top of the road turn right onto Brook Road Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

OS Map Ref: SE117870 (Turner Trails bench) SE129873 (Turner’s viewpoint) Directions: Castle location: 2 miles S of Leyburn on A6108. Turner Trails bench: Follow Coverham Lane from Middleham for 3/4 mile (SW of Middleham).

Opening: Castle opening times: 1 Apr30 Sep, daily 10am-6pm; 1 Oct-31 Mar, Sat-Wed 10am-4pm; Closed 24-26 Dec and 1 Jan. Prices: Castle admission costs: Adult £4.20; Children £2.10; Concessions £3.60; English Heritage free.

The Turner Trails Bench can be accessed all year round and is free.

Middleham Castle’s massive Keep is one of the largest in England and the castle was the childhood home of Richard III. Middleham impressed Turner more than any other site in Yorkshire, if the number of his sketches is an indication.

He made more than a dozen in a small notebook and four more considered sketches in a larger sketchbook.

Turner’s main interest was in searching for a viewpoint from near the river, looking up at Middleham Castle and the town. He also found some exceptionally fine views over the Castle and town from the higher ground behind

the castle, taking in the broad sweep of Wensleydale behind and Turner explored the area thoroughly from south west to south east. The fields behind the castle to the south east provided the subjects for some particularly fine sketches.

The Turner Trails bench is situated about 3/4 mile south west of Middleham next to the roadside, by a stone wall and footpath sign. The bench overlooks Pinker’s Pond and you can enjoy the views across Coverdale.

You can also visit Middleham Castle, the focus of Turner’s sketches.

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Mossdale Falls © Catriona McLees

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Mossdale Falls Mossdale is a little-known complex of falls at the very head of Wensleydale, while Mossdale Beck tumbles down a number of falls on the north flank of Widdale Fell.

atmospheric watercolour.

The location remains remarkably unchanged today except for a railway viaduct (now disused) built across the top of the falls in the 1870s.

1816 was one of the wettest summers on meteorological record and the falls must have been particularly impressive when Turner saw them.

The Turner Trails bench is located next to Mossdale Gill beside a public footpath, near the falls and can only be accessed on foot. The footpath can be accessed from Appersett, offering a pleasant walk along field paths beside the River Ure and Mossdale Gill up to the falls.

Turner made a few sketches at this site, but it was the upper falls that caught his particular attention and from that he made a wonderfully dramatised and

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View from Nappa Scar © Si Homfray V

Nappa Scar, nr Askrigg

Mossdale Falls, off the A684, nr Hawes, North Yorkshire DL8

Heugh, Nappa Scar, Near Askrigg, North Yorkshire BD23

OS Map Ref: SD827919

OS Map Ref: SD963917

Directions: Follow the A684 HawesGarsdale road to Appersett. Mossdale Falls is approximately two miles NW along the A684 and can only be accessed on foot, 3/4 mile up a public footpath from the road.

Directions: Follow the A684 Leyburn-Hawes road to Bainbridge, where the minor road to Askrigg is clearly signposted. Follow main road through Askrigg and for a mile beyond to reach Nappa Scar Farm.

There is some informal parking on the opposite side of the road, shortly before the footpath. Alternatively park in Appersett and follow the riverside footpath to the falls about 2 miles away.

Alternatively, follow the back road from Carperby to Nappa Scar Farm.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

At Nappa Scar Farm, turn uphill into Harr Gill and follow to the end.

NB: this is a very steep narrow road, with limited parking at the top.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

The fells above Nappa Scar, north east of Askrigg, offer stunning views over Wensleydale and Turner visited the area during his 1816 trip to Askrigg.

Turner finished his studies at Askrigg by taking sketches from above the town, going up towards Newbiggin and Ellerkin Scar (north of Nappa Scar).

From here he could see right across Wensleydale towards Semer Water, where he had sketched earlier in the day. Looking at the sketches carefully it is interesting to discover

that Turner has taken a synthetic approach to his material. The sketch from the lower viewpoint clearly includes sight of Semer Water itself, but the lake can only be seen from much higher up the fell.

The Turner Trails bench is situated above the hamlet of Nappa Scar at Heugh, up a steep, narrow road in a quarried area overlooking the valley.

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Newby Hall

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Newby Hall Newby Hall was built by Sir Edward Blackett in the early 1690s and in 1748 was bought by William Weddell who formed an outstanding collection of classical antiquities and created a sculpture gallery in the house to display them. Weddell died in 1792 and the house passed to his cousin, Thomas Robinson, Lord Grantham, who, in 1833, inherited the Earldom of de Grey.

Elizabeth Weddell, William’s wife, appears to have had a significant interest in watercolours

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when Turner was young and it is possible that Turner had contact with the family in previous years.

Newby Hall would certainly have been one of the important subjects in the list of 120 watercolours that Turner was intending for the history of York series.

He made detailed pencil sketches of the house and grounds from west and south although these were not completed as watercolours.

The Turner Trails bench is located within Newby Hall’s gardens.

View from Surprise View, Otley Chevin

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Otley Chevin Forest Park

Newby Hall & Gardens, Ripon, North Yorkshire HG4 5AE

Surprise View Car Park, Yorkgate, Otley, West Yorkshire LS21

Tel: Email: Web:

Tel: 01943 465023 Web: www.chevinforest.co.uk

01423 322583 info@newbyhall.com www.newbyhall.com

OS Map Ref: SE348674 Directions: 2 miles off the A1, on the B6265 between Ripon and Boroughbridge (Sat Nav ref HG4 5AJ).

Opening: 1 Apr-26 Sep Tues-Sun plus bank holidays. Open daily in Jul and Aug. Gardens open 11am-5.30pm; house open for tours only 12-4pm Prices: House & Gardens: Adult: £12 Concession: £11 Child/Disabled: £9.50 Family: (2+2) £40 Family: (2+3) £43 Gardens only: Adult: £8.50 Concession: £7.50 Child/Disabled: £7 Family (2+2) £30 Family (2+3) £36

OS Map Ref: SE204442 Directions: 9 miles NW of Leeds on the A660 to Otley; follow signs from Otley town to East Chevin Road.

There is also a car park adjacent to Surprise View off Yorkgate at the top of the Chevin.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

The views across Wharfedale from Otley Chevin and Caley Park were among Turner’s favourite subjects.

Turner came up to the Chevin on many occasions and made many sketches and, as a result, numerous finished watercolours. His famous painting, Snow Storm: Hannibal and his Army Crossing the Alps, is reputed to have been inspired by a view of the Chevin with a stormy background sky.

One of the finest of Turner’s Chevin watercolours is a

view of the Wharfe Valley and Farnley Hall on the opposite side. It is taken from a viewpoint on the West Chevin, but the exact spot is now obscured by tree growth.

Visitors today can walk to the rock outcrop of Surprise View where Turner’s material may be seen very clearly, since this viewpoint is higher and completely open. Surprise View is the highest point of the Chevin, reaching 282 metres, and offers extensive views of Otley and Wharfedale.

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Ouse Ouse Bridge, Bridge York

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Ouse Bridge, York The Ouse Bridge, which opened in 1566, had five arches, with the central one 81 feet wide and more than 17 feet high. However the bridge that Turner originally sketched was demolished in 1810 and the current bridge was not completed until 1821.

During his 1797 visit, Turner made some very detailed and important sketches of the river, Ouse Bridge, St Mary’s Abbey and the Minster.

On his second major trip in 1816, Turner’s principal interest was in the

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panoramic views from two windmills, Acomb to the west and Lamel Hill to the south-east. The former still stands (albeit in rather changed circumstances) and has recently been renovated. Turner also revisited St Mary’s Abbey and made numerous sketches of Ouse Bridge and the river, and views of the Minster from the north and east.

Standing on King’s Staithe today, visitors can reflect on the contrast between the new Ouse Bridge and the old one of Turner’s time.

Pickering Castle © Britain on View

44 Pickering Castle

Ouse Bridge, Bridge Street, York YO1

Pickering Castle, Pickering, North Yorkshire YO18 7AX

OS Map Ref: SE603515

Tel: 01751 474989 Web: www.english-heritage.org.uk/ daysout/properties/pickeringcastle/

Directions: Ouse Bridge is in the centre of York and is best viewed on foot from King’s Staithe.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

OS Map Ref: SE798848 (Turner’s viewpoint) SE799845 (Castle) Directions: 15 miles SW of Scarborough just off the A170.

Opening: Castle opening hours: 1 Apr-30 Jun, Thu-Mon 10-17; 1 Jul-31 Aug, daily 10-17; 1-30 Sep, Thu-Mon 10-17 Prices: Adult: £3.70 Child: £1.90 Concession: £3.10 Family Ticket: £9.30 English Heritage free.

Pickering Castle is a classic 12th century motte and bailey castle, which stands just north of the town centre.

While it cannot be seen by passing road traffic, it can be seen by passengers on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway.

Turner’s sketches of Pickering are unknown to the public since their identification is unpublished. He made a series of sketches in the Chester sketchbook in which he explored the views of the castle from various aspects along Pickering Beck. Turner took views ranging from south of the castle to the north as far as Newbridge,

more or less along the line of the North Yorkshire Moors Railway from Pickering Station to Newbridge.

Turner’s viewpoint is on a public footpath on the opposite side of the valley to the castle about 500 yards north and can only be accessed on foot.

Visitors can also enjoy a visit to the castle, with its spectacular views from the motte-top.

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Plumpton Rocks © Catriona McLees

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Plumpton Rocks Plumpton Rocks is a large picturesque garden formed in the 1760s by creating a lake at the foot of an extensive range of weathered and contorted gritstone outcrops.

Known as Plompton Rocks in Turner’s time, an early guide mentioned that “seats are placed in different parts from whence the spectator may have the most advantageous views of the different objects that compose this romantic scene. The striking contrasts of the weather-beaten rock, with the blooming verdure that surrounds it, affords a

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pleasing instance of what nature, properly assisted by art, is capable of producing.”

Turner’s two oil paintings depict the view from the two opposite ends of the water: one of the lake head looking south, with fisherman at work on the lake, the other from the dam looking north, with fisherman packing up for the night.

The view from the south end of the lake, (on the dam at the outflow of the lake) is remarkably well preserved and Turner’s view is almost unchanged.

Richmond Castle

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Priory Villas & South Bank, Richmond

Plumpton, Knaresborough, North Yorkshire HG5 8NA

Priory Villas, Richmond, North Yorkshire DL10 4LH

Tel: 01298 386360 Web: www.hha.org.uk/ Property/1400/Plumpton-Rocks

OS Map Ref: NZ175006

OS Map Ref: SE355536 Directions: 7 miles NW of Wetherby on the A661. The turn to Plumpton Rocks is clearly signposted.

Opening: Mar-Oct, Sat-Sun & bank holidays, 11am-6pm.

Prices: Adult: £2.50 Children: £1.50

Directions: 4 miles SW of the A1 at Scotch Corner. Follow the A6108 to Richmond. From the town centre, take the A6136 towards Catterick Garrison for about 1/2 mile.

Parking with easy access to Priory Villas and South Bank is available at The Station, Station Yard, Richmond DL10 4LD. Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

South Bank is a lovely area of open fields below Priory Villas, south of the River Swale, between the waterfalls and Mercury Bridge (also known as Station Bridge).

In 1816, Turner set out to make a circuit of the easterly and southerly aspects of Richmond and Richmond Castle, making detailed sketches from above the river to the east, two more detailed sketches from the fields to the south-east and a final view from immediately south of the old Green bridge looking up at the whole south range of the castle.

Retrace Turner’s route with a short walk from The Station.

Turn right out of The Station car park and walk down the steps from the bridge to the riverbank. At the bottom of the steps, turn left under the Mercury Bridge (new since Turner’s time) and go through the two kissing gates.

The footpath through the fields, which belong to the Richmondshire Landscape Trust, follows the river and provides extensive views of the castle (like Turner’s) and the town.

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Ravensworth Castle

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Ravensworth Castle Ravensworth Castle is a significant 14th century monument that now lies in ruins. Turner passed through Ravensworth on horseback, on his way to Greta Bridge and Teesdale, but conditions were far from ideal for sketching.

The summer of 1816 was one of the wettest on record, and possibly under the shelter of an umbrella, Turner did manage to make three quite detailed sketches of Ravensworth Castle, with Kirby Hill Church beyond, in his pocketbook.

No finished version of Ravensworth seems ever to

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have been completed, but one attractive detail noted in one of the sketches of Ravensworth Castle is that of ‘Children at Play’ in the foreground. Turner was always alert to the human dimensions of the landscape and no doubt he would have developed some entertaining detail around this theme if he had made a finished watercolour.

Ravensworth Castle is on private land. Kirby Hill Church is accessible and is a delightful and little-known spot that is a prominent landmark in Turner’s sketches. A footpath links Ravensworth and Kirby Hill.

Richmond Castle © Si Homfray

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Richmond Castle

Ravensworth Castle, Ravensworth, Richmond, North Yorkshire DL11 7ET

Castle Walk, Richmond, North Yorkshire DL10 4QW

OS Map Ref: NZ143077

Tel: 01748 822493 Web: www.english-heritage.org.uk/ daysout/properties/richmondcastle/

Directions: 5 miles NE of the A1 at Scotch Corner on the A66; turn left at the Ravensworth and Kirby Hill signpost follow for a mile, along the main road through Ravensworth. The Castle can be viewed from the road.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

OS Map Ref: NZ171007 Directions: 4 miles SW of the A1 at Scotch Corner. Follow the A6108 to Richmond. The Castle is just off Market Place. Castle Walk can only be accessed on foot Opening: Castle opening: 1 Apr-30 Sep, daily 10am-6pm; 1 Oct-31 Mar, Thurs-Mon 10am-4pm.

Prices: Adult: £4.50, Children: £2.30 Concessions: £3.80, English Heritage free.

The Turner Trails Bench on Castle Walk can be accessed all year round and is free.

Richmond Castle is breathtakingly sited on a rocky promontory above the River Swale and is among the oldest Norman stone fortresses in Britain, begun around 1071.

In 1797 Turner found a fine viewpoint of the castle seen over the bridge from the riverside, which he developed into a fullscale, but unfinished, watercolour; however, he did develop a wonderful effect of dawn light as the sun rises on the castle. Even as a young man Turner seems to have adopted the practice of rising to see the

dawn, which he continued throughout his life. The viewpoint is today a little overgrown by trees, and is more clearly visible in the winter.

In 1816 Turner made a fairly comprehensive survey of Richmond Castle from different quarters of the compass. He also returned to the viewpoint of his 1797 watercolour and made a new watercolour study in a much more energetic style.

The Turner Trails bench is located on Castle Walk, the steep pedestrian walkway around the castle.

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Rievaulx Abbey

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Rievaulx Abbey Rievaulx Abbey became one of England’s wealthiest monasteries before its dissolution by King Henry VIII in 1538 and is one of the most complete and impressive abbeys in Britain.

In 1801 Turner made a series of quick studies of Rievaulx, recording the ruins from viewpoints ranging from the west through south, to the east. In addition he made a large pencil sketch of the imposing end of the south transept.

One of Turner’s two finished watercolours based on his 1816 sketches is one of his most expansive treatments

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of atmosphere and light, cloud and wooded valley, and one of his most brilliant evocations of the constantly changing moods and weather of the Yorkshire scenery that he so much enjoyed.

Turner’s sketching spot for his other watercolour is on the bridge south of the abbey. Sadly the actual view of the abbey from here is now obscured by tree overgrowth.

However, visitors can explore the atmospheric ruins close up and sample scrumptious Yorkshire fare in the Rievaulx Abbey Tearoom.

Rievaulx Abbey, Rievaulx, North Yorkshire YO62 5LB Tel: 01439 798228 Web: www.english-heritage.org.uk/ daysout/properties/rievaulxabbey/

Ripon Cathedral © Britain on View

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Ripon Cathedral & Bell Banks, Sharow Minster Road, Ripon, North Yorkshire HG4 1QS Tel: 01765 603462 Email: postmaster@riponcathedral. co.uk Web:

www.riponcathedral.co.uk

OS Map Ref: SE574843 (Turner’s viewpoint) SE577850 (Abbey)

OS Map Ref: SE313711 (Ripon Cathedral) SE323717 (Bell Bank)

Directions: Follow the A170 ThirskScarborough road to Helmsley; 2 1/4 miles N of Helmsley on minor road off B1257

Directions: 4 miles west of the A1 on the A61 to Ripon. View from Bell Banks: From the A1, follow A61 to 1st roundabout and bear left, signposted Sharow. Bell Bank is only accessible by foot and a footpath leads off Sharow Lane which can be followed down to the river (no parking available).

Opening: 01 Apr-30 Sep daily, 10am6pm; 1-31 Oct 10am-5pm, 1 Nov-31 Mar 10am-4pm all Thu-Mon 24-26 Dec and 1 Jan closed.

Prices: Adult: £5.30 Child: £2.70 Concession: £4.50 English Heritage members free.

Opening: Opens every day half an hour before the fi rst service and after evensong (usually about 6.15) Prices: Free.

Ripon Minster, not yet a Cathedral at the time of Turner’s visits, was the focus of his sketches of Ripon. Dominating the Ripon skyline, this wonderfully atmospheric building continues to inspire.

In 1797, Turner concentrated on the old Ure Bridge and the interior and exterior of the Minster, including one particularly fine view of the west front seen from the still-picturesque street of Kirkgate.

In 1816, although Turner made a number of close up

studies of the Minster, he wanted a more distant view.

He returned to Ure Bridge and also ventured further afield, possibly with local guidance, to Bell Banks on the north bank of the River Ure near Sharow. This spot is now only visited by those with local knowledge, but Turner sketched it several times and it seems that he was planning a finished watercolour, though none appears to have been completed.

The Turner Trails bench is located within the grounds of Ripon Cathedral.

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Rotherham Minster

Rotherham Minster (Church of All Saints) Both the Chapel of Our Lady of Rotherham Bridge and All Saints Church date from the 15th century, with some parts of the Church remaining from Saxon and Norman structures. The quality of the buildings testifies to Rotherham’s wealth and spirit in the agricultural medieval period.

From the left bank of the River Don, Turner sketched the medieval bridge and Chantry Chapel, with the town and spire of All Saints Church beyond. If one examines the sketch

carefully, the one large window of the original chapel has been bricked up, leaving only tiny apertures; the chapel was then in use as the town jail, before being fully restored in 1923 and rededicated as a place of worship by the Bishop of Sheffield in 1924.

Turner’s viewpoint for his sketch, ‘Rotherham Bridge and Chapel, with All Saints Church Beyond’, is perfectly preserved today off Greasbrough Road. An existing town centre trail also links the various sites.

All Saints Square, Rotherham, South Yorkshire S60 1PW Tel: 01709 364737 Web: www.rotherhamminster.org www.rotherham.gov.uk/ info/200102/walking/905/ town_centre_trail/1 OS Map Ref: SK427931 Directions: From M1 North, exit J34 onto A6178 past Magna. At second roundabout, left onto A630 Centenary Way, right at next roundabout onto Main Street, 2nd left onto Market Street & car parks.

From M1 South, exit J35 onto A629.

At third roundabout, right onto A630 Centenary Way, left at next roundabout onto Main Street, 2nd left onto Market Street & car parks.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

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Scarborough

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Scarborough South Bay Beach, Foreshore Road, Scarborough, North Yorkshire YO11 1NU Tel: 01723 383636 OS Map Ref: TA045880 Directions: Follow signs for Scarborough town centre/railway station. At station, turn right at traffi c lights onto Valley Bridge Road and follow signs to South Bay/South Cliff.

Alternatively, catch the Park & Ride bus from either the Filey Road (A165) or Seamer Road (A64) Park & Ride.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

In 1801, while en route to Scotland, Turner sketched Scarborough from the South Bay beach and made numerous studies of the waves breaking on the shore, together with a series of distant views from high ground inland to the north west and south west.

The views from the north west were treated on a larger scale in pencil and in watercolour.

In about 1816, Turner returned to Scarborough to make a comprehensive study of the town, beach and castle and filled two sketchbooks with studies.

Turner’s 1801 sketchbook study of Scarborough from South Bay beach became the basis of a watercolour study and three watercolours (1809, 1811, and another around 1825), for a series illustrating the Ports of England.

Turner’s view of the castle and harbour captured in his 1811 watercolour can be found on Scarborough’s South Bay promenade, quite near to Scarborough Spa. South Bay beach is a large sandy bay with good facilities.

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Scarborough Castle

Scarborough Castle Turner was clearly fond of Scarborough, Britain’s first seaside resort. The number of sketches and watercolours for one area, all of which centred on Scarborough Castle, is one of the highest for any site in his oeuvre. Towering over the clifftops, the castle has a colourful history, starting life as an Iron Age Fort, being occupied by the Romans, becoming a Viking settlement and reaching its heyday under Henry II. In 1801, Turner recorded the view up the castle cliff from the near end of the harbour wall in watercolour

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and a view of the Barbican in watercolour, silhouetted against the sunset.

In 1816 Turner explored the south bay, the Weaponness valley, the harbour area, the castle ward – making sketches looking from the castle to the north, south and west – and the north bay. In the end he returned to his favourite view of the castle and harbour from the south bay in a new watercolour painted in 1818.

Scarborough Castle is open for visitors to explore 3,000 years of turbulent history from Bronze age to World War II.

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Semer Water © Britain on View

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Semer Water

Scarborough Castle, Castle Road, Scarborough, North Yorkshire YO11 1HY

Semer Water, Near Countersett, North Yorkshire DL8

Tel: 01723 372451 Web: www.english-heritage.org.uk/ scarboroughcastle

Directions: Leave the A684 LeyburnHawes road at Bainbridge (signposted Semer Water, Stalling Busk or Countersett) and follow for 2.5 miles SW of Bainbridge to the crossroads in Countersett (leading to Marsett, Bainbridge, Hawes and Semer Water).

OS Map Ref: TA050892 Directions: Follow signs for Scarborough town centre/railway station. At station, turn left at traffi c lights onto Northway, then next right onto Victoria Road. Follow to roundabout and straight over onto Castle Rd. Opening: 1 Apr-30 Sep daily, 10am6pm; 1 Oct-31 Mar Thurs-Mon, 10am4pm 24-26 Dec and 1 Jan closed Prices: Adult: £4.70 Child: £2.40 Concession: £4.00 Family: £11.80 English Heritage free

OS Map Ref: SD919878

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

Semer Water is the largest natural lake in North Yorkshire, and Turner’s main subject was the view over the lake from its north end, looking over the famous Carlow Stone towards the high fells of Raydale.

He made a careful pencil sketch and developed that into one of his finest finished watercolours called ‘Simmer Lake, near Askrigg’. Legend has it that the stone fell short when the Devil tried to throw it from Addlebrough to Crag End. It may be that Turner knew this story, since a

cow lying next to the stone perhaps insinuates a certain loucheness to the Devil’s character. However that may be, Turner’s principal interest was in the fantastic effects of sunlight lancing through cloud over the distant mountains. The site is remarkably unchanged, although the water is actually clearer today.

The Turner Trails bench is situated above Semer Water, on the edge of Countersett, at the crossroads between Marsett Lane and Crag Side Road.

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Skipton Castle

Skipton Castle Skipton Castle began life as a Norman fort built in 1090, but assumed its present grandeur under the Clifford family after 1310. It is one of the most complete and wellpreserved medieval castles in England, standing on a 40 metre high crag.

Turner visited Skipton twice during his 1816 grand tour.

On the very last day of his tour, He finally found a view from the higher ground to the north of the castle which he then sketched in detail in one of his larger sketchbooks.

Turner’s Yorkshire subjects from 1816 are some of the

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Spofforth Castle © Si Homfray

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Spofforth Castle

most atmospheric of his career. The previous year, Mount Tambora in the Philippines had erupted, and the dust caused a very unsettled and changeable summer in 1816, full of effects of rain, mist and shafts of light. Turner must have intended a finished watercolour of Skipton but he does not seem to have completed it.

Skipton Castle, Skipton, North Yorkshire BD23 1AW

Castle Street, Spofforth, Harrogate, North Yorkshire HG3 1AR

Tel: 01756 792442 Email: info@skiptoncastle.co.uk Web: www.skiptoncastle.co.uk

Tel: 01904 601974 Web: www.english-heritage.org.uk/ daysout/properties/spofforthcastle/

The viewpoint is now partially obscured by subsequent tree growth.

However, there are several recognisable and accessible sketch subjects in the castle precincts.

Prices: Adult: £6.20 Children (5-17): £3.70 Children under 5 free Students and Over 60s: £5.60 Family Ticket (2+up to 3 children): £19.50

OS Map Ref: SD990519 Directions: Take the A65 to Skipton and follow signs to town centre. Turn right and follow road into town centre, the castle is at the head of the High Street.

OS Map Ref: SE360511

Opening: Mar-Sep 10am-6pm; Oct-Feb 10am-4pm. Closed 25 Dec

Closed 24-26 Dec and 1 Jan

Directions: 3.5 miles SE of Harrogate; off A661 at Spofforth.

Opening: 1 Apr-30 Sept 10am-6pm; 1 Oct-31 Mar 10am - 4pm Prices: Free.

Turner would have been particularly interested in Spofforth, built in the 14th century as a fortified manor house, for its connections with the Percy family – a great medieval dynasty with castles at Alnwick and Warkworth in Northumberland, and a tomb in Beverley Minster, which Turner also sketched on the same tour.

Turner sketched the castle from its western aspect, concentrating on its octagonal tower during his 1797 visit. In 1816, although he made a number of close

up reference studies of the castle, he was looking for a more distant view.

Turner made a number of smaller sketches in his pocketbook, again mostly from viewpoints to the west, but seems to have been satisfied that he had already found the most characteristic aspect with which to work, had the opportunity to make a finished watercolour materialised.

Turner’s actual viewpoint is very easy to locate at a corner of the ruined hall and chamber.

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St Agatha’s Abbey © Catriona McLees

St Agatha’s Abbey, Easby (Easby Abbey) St Agatha’s Abbey was a Premonstratensian or White Canons house c1152, now notable for its lavish roof-height refectory from the 14th century and other monastic buildings. Within the precinct is the stillactive parish church of St Agatha, displaying fine 13th century wall paintings.

Returning to Easby for a second time, the subject that Turner developed into a watercolour for the history of York series was the view from downstream that he had also painted on his first visit in 1797.

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He developed it through a superb colour study into one of the most highlywrought and serene compositions of all his Yorkshire subjects.

This view is difficult to obtain today (and it’s hard to see where Turner can have been if not in the middle of the river).

The beautiful setting of the substantial Abbey ruins can be easily reached via a pleasant walk from Richmond Castle along the River Swale.

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Sutton Bank

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Sutton Bank

Easby, Nr Richmond, North Yorkshire DL10

Sutton Bank National Park Centre, Sutton Bank, North Yorkshire YO7 2EH

Tel: 0870 333 1181 Web: www.english-heritage.org.uk/ daysout/properties/easbyabbey/

Tel: 01845 597426 Email: suttonbank@northyorkmoorsnpa.gov.uk

OS Map Ref: NZ185003

OS Map Ref: SE517826

Directions: 4 miles SW of the A1 at Scotch Corner. Follow the A6108 to Richmond. From the town centre, follow the B6271 for around 1 mile.

Follow the brown tourist signs

Directions: Follow the A170 ThirskHelmsley road to the top of Sutton Bank. The Visitor Centre is clearly signposted just off the A170.

Opening: 1 Apr-30 Sep 10am-6pm; 1-31 Oct 10am-5pm; 1 Nov-31 Mar 10am-4pm; Closed 24-26 Dec and 1 Jan Prices: Free.

Web: www.northyorkmoors.org.uk

Opening: Visitor Centre: Apr-Oct daily, 10am-5pm; Nov, Dec and Mar daily, 11am-4pm; Jan-Feb weekends, 11am-4pm.

The Turner Trails Bench can be accessed all year round NB: dogs are not allowed into the Visitor Centre Prices: Free.

One of the most celebrated viewpoints in Yorkshire is from Sutton Bank, where the Thirsk to Helmsley road climbs a steep 200m ascent up the western crags of the Hambleton Hills. It commands a panorama over the whole of the central plains towards the Pennines.

Turner’s sketches of this area have only very recently been identified as being from Sutton Bank

by Professor David Hill of the University of Leeds as part of a comprehensive cataloguing of Turner’s

Yorkshire sketches for the Tate.

Turner made six doublepage sketches at Sutton Bank, panning round on successive pages to record views from Roulston Scar and Hood Hill towards the south to Gormire Lake and Whitestone Cliff towards the north.

The Turner Trails bench is located at Turner’s viewpoint on the Cleveland Way National Trail, about 400 metres south of the Sutton Bank National Park Visitor Centre.

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The Kings Head © Si Homfray

The Kings Head Hotel, Richmond Richmond was an important subject to Turner and he visited twice; in 1797, when making his first tour to Yorkshire, and again in 1816 when he toured to make a series of watercolours to illustrate ‘A General History of the County of York’ by Thomas Dunham Whitaker. Each of his excursions around Richmond resulted in a finished watercolour.

Turner is likely to have stayed at the Kings Head Hotel in the Market Place and used this as a base to range far and wide in

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search of the best views.

Turner is believed to have described the hotel as “the finest in Richmondshire.”

The Turner Trails bench is located in the Kings Head’s Turner & Liszt al fresco dining terrace.

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Thornton Force

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Thornton Force, nr Ingleton

The Kings Head Hotel, Market Place, Richmond, North Yorkshire DL10 4HS

Ingleton Waterfalls Trail, Broadwood Entrance, Ingleton, Carnforth LA6 3ET

Tel: 01748 850220 Email: res@kingsheadrichmond.co.uk Web: www.kingsheadrichmond.com

Tel: 01524 241930 Email: info@ingletonwaterfallstrail .co.uk Web: www.ingletonwaterfallswalk. co.uk

OS Map Ref: NZ172009 Directions: 4 miles SW of the A1 at Scotch Corner. Follow the A6108 to Richmond. Market Place is in the centre of the town.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free entry to the al fresco area.

OS Map Ref: SD694753 Directions: Follow the A65 SkiptonKendal road to Ingleton. Ingleton Waterfalls Trail is on the edge of the village and well signposted from the A65.

Opening: All year round (closed Christmas Day). Trail opens at 9am and closes depending on the light at the time of year.

Prices: Adult: £4.50 Children: £2 (under 16) Family ticket (2 adults + up to 3): £10

Thornton Force is one of the most famous waterfalls in the area, where the river falls 14 metres over limestone rocks in an impressive cascade of water, and was of particular interest to Turner. Turner had an active interest in the new science of geology and might well have known of the significance of the falls in geological terms, with its famous unconformity, by then already millions of years old.

The viewpoint where Turner made his fine sketch of Thornton Force is remarkably unchanged today. The sketch was obviously intended for

one of his illustrations for Whitaker’s York history series. Unfortunately most of his ideas remained unrealised due to the untimely death of Whitaker before the project was barely one quarter completed.

Thornton Force is one of the falls on the delightful Ingleton Waterfalls Trail. The trail is 4.5 miles long through ancient oak woodland and magnificent Dales scenery via a series of spectacular waterfalls and geological features. Thornton Force is located 1½ miles from the car park and can only be accessed on foot.

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West Burton Falls © Si Homfray

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West Burton Falls West Burton is a lovely Yorkshire Dales village, characterised by its packhorse bridges, a large village green, market cross, stocks and the charming Walden Beck, with nearby waterfalls and pools.

Turner’s main subject was the picturesque waterfall, of which he made a beautiful pencil sketch. The site is remarkably unchanged today and the accuracy of Turner’s drawing can be readily appreciated. The sketch also indicates that he understood something of the early science of

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geology. The waterfall takes its form from limestone knitted together by wavy horizontal joints (called stylobates). The fact that the beds are nearly horizontal allows the water to fan out in a transparent veil and Turner indicates both cause and effect by showing the wavy bedding joints through the transparent film of water.

West Burton, North Yorkshire DL8

The Turner Trails bench is at the lower end of the village behind the old mill. It overlooks the beck, which runs away from the waterfall.

Opening: All year round.

Web: www.ydmt.org/page. php?page=projects_more_ info&id=400 OS Map Ref: SE020867

West Tanfield © Si Homfray

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West Tanfield Main Street, West Tanfi eld, Ripon, North Yorkshire HG4 Web:

www.english-heritage.org.uk/ daysout/properties/marmiontower/

Directions: Leave the A684 LeyburnHawes road at the turning for the B6160/Ellers Lane to West Burton.

OS Map Ref: SE269787 (Bridge) SE268787 (Marmion Tower)

The Falls are accessed easily from the footpath leading off from behind the old Mill. Upon entering the village, bear left where the road swings round to the right onto the village green. The Mill is a few yards further on the left.

Directions: Follow the A6108 LeyburnRipon road to West Tanfi eld

Prices: Free.

Opening: Bridge is open all year round.

Marmion Tower: 1 Apr-30 Sep 10am-6pm; 1-31 Oct 10am-5pm; 1 Nov-31 Mar 10am-4pm; Closed 24-26 Dec and 1 Jan Prices: Free.

West Tanfield is well known for its picturesque grouping of red-roofed cottages, medieval tower and church, and River Ure Bridge. The Marmion Tower is the 15th century gatehouse to the now-vanished riverside manor house and has a beautiful oriel window.

Turner made three sketches at West Tanfield, including two quick sketches of Marmion Tower and the church from the left bank of the river and a more considered double-page sketch of the church and Marmion Tower seen

over the bridge from a viewpoint on the right bank downstream. It is typical of Turner that he found the most comprehensive view of West Tanfield and his sketch would no doubt have been turned into a finished watercolour had all Turner’s ideas for pictures been completed as planned.

Turner’s exact viewpoint is now obscured by riverside tree growth; you can enjoy the best view of West Tanfield from the bridge on Main Street.

Marmion Tower is also open to visitors.

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Wetherby Bridge © Si Homfray

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Wetherby Bridge The historic market town of Wetherby on the banks of the River Wharfe, like Boroughbridge, was an important staging post for travellers on the Great North Road, located about mid-way between London and Edinburgh. Wetherby Bridge, spanning the River Wharfe, is a Scheduled Ancient Monument and a Grade II listed structure.

Turner visited Wetherby sometime in 1816, on his way from Farnley Hall, the home of his Yorkshire friend and patron Walter Fawkes, to York, during his extensive tour of Yorkshire

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to collect material for his history of York commission.

For this commission, Turner was generally seeking out views that would unite most of a site’s essential features, so at Wetherby he sought out a vantage point that united the river, bridge, church and town from just a little way downstream of the bridge.

Unfortunately Turner’s exact viewpoint is now obscured by tree growth, but close up views of the bridge can be enjoyed from the town’s picnic site and car park.

Whitby

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Whitby

Wetherby Bridge, Wetherby, West Yorkshire LS22

West Cliff, Whitby, North Yorkshire YO21 3EN

OS Map Ref: SE406479

OS Map Ref: NZ886117

Directions: Just off the A1, follow the A661 towards the town centre. Just after crossing Wetherby Bridge, turn right at the mini-roundabout into the car park and picnic site.

Directions: Follow A171 to Whitby.

Follow West Cliff signs.

Opening: All year round.

Parking is available along the West Cliff and the beach can be reached on foot or via the cliff lift during the season.

Prices: Free.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free.

Turner used his first visit to Whitby in 1801 to make a comprehensive survey of Whitby, exploring the views of the abbey and old town from the inner harbour, besides venturing along the piers to take in the views.

He also strolled along the west beach sketching the distant view of the abbey headland seen beyond the wide breakers rolling in from the north sea.

In 1822 Turner was travelling to Edinburgh from London by sea and he appears to have put in at Whitby along the

way. He made only a few quick sketches of the entrance to the port as he approached from the sea.

Soon after, Turner painted a watercolour showing the abbey and entrance to the harbour from offshore, with the abbey cliff brilliantly lit up by the rays of the setting sun.

West Cliff is directly above Turner’s 1801 view from the beach and a good departure point to follow Turner’s walk along the beach.

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Whitby Abbey

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Whitby Abbey Whitby Abbey is the principal landmark throughout Turner’s sketches of this location. Set high on a cliff above the seaside town, the gaunt, imposing ruins of this Abbey have drawn successive generations to this site of settlement and religious devotion.

Founded in AD 657 by King Oswy of Northumbria, Whitby Abbey has over the years been a bustling settlement, a kings’ burial place, the setting for a historic meeting between Celtic and Roman clerics and the home of saints, including the poet Caedmon, while its

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gothic splendour inspired Bram Stoker’s Dracula.

In the mid 1820s, Turner painted a wonderfully active watercolour of the view along the west beach to the abbey with heavy waves breaking on the shore, presumably after a stormy night, with a team of salvagers hauling ashore what appears to be a broken ship’s mast.

One of Britain’s best loved visitor attractions, the iconic ruin of Whitby Abbey is a must when visiting the town, where you can enjoy the best views of the town from inside the abbey.

Richmond © Si Homfray

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Whitcliffe Scar from Round Howe, Richmond

Abbey Lane, Scarborough, North Yorkshire YO22 4JT

Round Howe, Richmond, North Yorkshire DL11

Tel: Web:

OS Map Ref: NZ157009 (Round Howe picnic site) NZ154016 (Turner’s viewpoint)

01947 603568 www.english-heritage.org.uk/ whitbyabbey

OS Map Ref: NZ903112 Directions: Follow A171 to Whitby. A well-signposted road leads from the town outskirts to the cliff-top abbey.

From the Whitby harbour area, the abbey can only be directly reached on foot via the 199 ‘abbey steps’ which are well-equipped with halting places and benches.

Opening: 1 Apr-30 Sep daily, 10am-6pm; 1 Oct-31 Mar Thurs-Mon, 10am-4pm 24-26 Dec and 1 Jan closed Prices: Adult: £5.80 Child: £2.90 Concession: £4.90 Family: £14.50 English Heritage free.

Directions: 5 miles SW of the A1 at Scotch Corner. Follow the A6108 through Richmond (heading towards Reeth). The picnic area is clearly signposted off this road.

Opening: All year round.

Prices: Free (car park charges apply).

Richmond was a key site for Turner and in 1816, he took himself off to find a distant view from the west and found a vantage point on the old track towards Whitcliffe Scar, about a mile west of the town.

From this vantage point, Turner could look over the castle and town to the wide sweep of the North Yorkshire plains all the way to the escarpment of the North York Moors, and he set all this down in a detailed sketch, which he turned into a finished watercolour.

The National Trust’s woodland at Round Howe is just outside Richmond. It is a lovely riverside area with nature trails. Footpaths leading north west from Round Howe (across the A6108) lead up to the track towards Whitcliffe Scar, with views looking back to Richmond.

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York Minster

There’s a whole lot more going on in orkshire

York Minster York Minster, the largest Gothic cathedral north of the Alps, is one of the great cathedrals of the world and Turner would have been drawn by its sheer magnificence.

During a visit to York in 1817, Turner painted a superb large watercolour of the view of York Minster from along the River Ouse, with the rising sun behind. This is, broadly speaking, a view from the north-west, but quite where from is a little hard to determine. It is possible that Turner actually painted

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67 it from memory following a morning boating expedition on the river.

Although he made only one finished watercolour, he made numerous highly detailed pencil sketches, many of great historical significance, including the Ouse Bridge, St Mary’s Abbey, the city walls and gates, and of course, the Minster, both inside and out.

Enjoy Turner’s viewpoints from inside the building as part of a visit to the architectural jewel that is York Minster.

The Visitors’ Department, Church House, Ogleforth, York YO1 7JN Tel: 0844 9390016 Email: info@yorkminster.org Web: www.yorkminster.org OS Map Ref: SE603521 Directions: Located in the heart of York within the medieval city walls Opening: Mon-Sat 9am (9.30am Nov-Mar), last entry 5.30pm; Sun 12 noon-3.45pm.

No sightseeing on Good Friday and Easter Sunday Prices: The Minster inc. entry to the Undercroft, Treasury & Crypt: Adult: £8 Senior (60+) & student: £7 Children with family (under 16): free The Tower: Adult: £5 Senior & student: £4 Children: (8-16) £3

View of Sheffield from Derbyshire Lane © Collection of the Guild of St George, Museums Sheffield

Not only did Turner enjoy the moors and dales, the dramatic coastlines and the sandy beaches, but you can too.

Whether you’re looking for fun and games, excitement and adventure or passion

and romance, gourmet dining or good old home cooking, you’ll find more of it in Yorkshire.

Our vibrant cities, historic market towns, medieval castles and cathedrals combine with great

museums and state of the art visitor attractions to make Yorkshire a county that offers you all you could possibly wish for. There’s so much to choose from.

Plan your next adventure at

yorkshire.com

Malham Cove, Yorkshire Š The Trustees of the British Museum

yorkshire.com/turner